One of the most successful technologies applied to industry is the single stage (back pressure) steam turbine. These reliable prime movers are used throughout the chemical and petroleum industries to produce electrical power and to drive pumps and compressors from process steam. Currently over 100,000 units are installed and operating at an average power level of about 250 kW.
Unfortunately, current single stage steam turbines are also one of the largest sources of wasted energy in these industries and others. The average efficiency of single stage, back pressure steam turbines is in the 30-45% range. Another problem commonly encountered with industrial steam applications is structural erosion produced by liquid or solid particles in poor quality steam. If the efficiencies of the current industrial steam turbine population were increased from the current average of 40%, to 80%, steam consumption could be halved (or power output doubled). For the above population this amounts to an energy savings of 467 trillion Btu per year (at 50% capacity factor). This energy savings is the energy equivalent of 74 million barrels of oil per year.
The current “new” industrial steam turbine market is 600 units per year at an average power level of 350 kW, with the same “old” efficiency level of 40%. If the efficiencies of these units were increased to 80%, the energy savings would be 3.9 trillion Btu per year (at 50% capacity factor). This energy savings is the equivalent of 623,000 barrels of oil per year. Clearly, a huge energy savings, and reduction of carbon and NOx emissions can be achieved if a more efficient, reliable and less costly steam turbine can be made available on a commercial basis.
Another application for steam turbines is the generation of power from high pressure geothermal steam. This technology has been successful for installations where the geothermal flow is flashed to low pressures, the steam separated and extensively scrubbed and cleaned. However, attempts to generate power from the steam from the geothermal wells at higher pressures have been unreliable because of structural erosion by liquid and solid particles.